Item of interest chapter 6: Bilingual Education

I feel pretty close to this subject; on the other hand bilingual education continues to receive criticism in the national media. The criticism effects on the public opinion, which often is based on misconceptions about bilingual education's goals and practice. It is a big controversy, but when schools provide children quality education in their primary language, they give them two things: knowledge and literacy. The knowledge that children get through their first language helps make the English they heard and read more comprehensible. Literacy developed in the primary language transfers to the second language. The reason is simple: Because we learn to read by reading, by making sense of what is on the page -it is, easier to learn to read in a language we understand. Once we can read in one language, we can read in general. I believe that being bilingual will help children with this transition to understand a new language.